July 17, 2008

Astronauts. Cabaret. Beards. Of course we’re talking about Season 2 of Emmy favorite "Mad Men," which begins July 27 on AMC.

At a “Mad Men” set visit for TV critics on Tuesday, I managed to corner
three young Sterling Cooper employees, or rather the trio of actors who
play them: Rich Sommer (who plays Harry Crane), Aaron Staton (published author Ken Cosgrove) and Michael Gladis (Paul
Kinsey; all three are pictured below, at right).

As you’ll see from our exchange, there was a certain amount of levity.
I don’t know if it’s to our credit or not, but we didn’t need an
excessive number of strong drinks to bring on aforementioned levity. Perhaps it was just the proximity to Stork Club ashtrays and gold lame housedresses? In any case, talking to these three gents was even more fun than looking around Roger Sterling's office (where I spotted a tome by Albert Camus, of all things).

The actors and I did discuss, in a few somewhat more serious moments, their characters and
whether they’ll get more screen time this season. (By the way, for recent interviews with "Mad Men's" Jon Hamm, go here, and creator Matthew Weiner, go here. There's even more "Mad Men" coverage here, scroll down to see all the stories.)

And despite what you’ll
read below, though, there will not be astronauts this season. Or a
cabaret act from Kinsey.

I think.

It’s true, however, that Kinsey (noted author of "Death Is My Client") now sports a beard. You can be sure that I got to the bottom of that issue. Read on for more.

MR: Do we learn more about your characters this year? Do you guys get some meaty stuff?

Rich: Yeah, I think you learn not only more about the characters, each
of them, but you learn more about the world that it’s set it. It’s not
just taking place in the office or the house any more, it really breaks
the walls.

Aaron: Yeah, it’s kind of cool. I feel like last season was about this
group of people and how they related to one another. And this year,
it’s about that same group of people and how they relate to the world.
You see a lot of the changes that the world around them is going
through. Without being specific – I’m not going to say anything.
Because I can’t be specific [laughter], but that’s what it seems like.

MR: Well, we know Kinsey has a beard.

Aaron: Exactly. How wild is that?

MR: That’s the best part of Season 2!

Michael: The beard?

MR: Yeah. So are you tired of questions about the beard yet?

Michael: No, I’m not tired of the beard question. It’s fun to have a beard.

MR: I did a whole blog post on the beard, like, why aren’t they posting
more photos of the beard [on AMC’s press site], I demand to see more of
the beard!

Michael: I think I saw that. It’s kind of Grizzly Adams right now because it hasn’t been touched in a week and a half.

Aaron: It’s a lot of work having a beard.

MR: You wear it well. So you grew it for a play? Can you give me the short history of the beard?

Michael: One of my best friends in New York is a really gifted playwright, Chad Beckim. He’d written this part, and I’d helped develop the play [“The Main(e) Play”], and I thought I wasn’t going to be able to do it, but because of the strike, I said, “Listen, I can do the show, so let’s do it.” I did the play and came back for the SAG Awards, Matt saw the beard – it was big, bushy, [the play] was set in Maine, so I was playing this real redneck Mainer.

Aaron: And he was building an ark, simultaneously.

Michael: [laughter] Cubit by cubit. But yeah, Matt saw it and said, “Keep it.” Or, “Don’t shave it until I tell you.”

MR: So Michael, I was talking to these guys about this year on the show, and how it would be cool to see more of them.

Michael: Tell Matt.

MR: One of the best moments of the finale was when Harry ran from the room where Don was doing the Carousel pitch – it was like, in that moment, Harry was me, I was choked up too, you know?

Michael: Harry was all of us. [laughter]

Rich: No, you’re right, that’s what’s kind of fun about these guys. They’re all three so different now. When we did the pilot, Matt talks about this – that we were meant to be three of the same person. This Greek chorus that sort of popped up once in a while.

Rich: Whereas now, there’s some little piece of each of these character to latch into. I used to do improv a lot, and in every improv scene, there should be a crazy person and a sane person. And the sane person is the one who’s like, “Why are you speaking only in Chinese?” They just keep calling [strange behavior] out. That’s kind of our job, to call it out, to make it relatable.

Aaron: Because everyone is speaking Chinese.

Rich: Right, you’ll see it in the fifth episode, when they go to China. MR: I heard about that, the trip to China. It’s like the Brady Bunch’s trip to Hawaii, right?

Aaron: Right.

Michael: We jump the shark in a really big way.

MR: And you can confirm the Paris Hilton cameo?

Rich: Yes, and I can confirm that Harry becomes an astronaut. I mean, that was obvious.

MR: I called that. I saw that coming from Day 1.

Aaron: It’s obvious.

Michael: And then Paul mind-melds with Joan and they become the same person.

MR: And then Ken comes out of the closet, right? Because he’s like, “Salvatore got to!”

Rich: Right, exactly! [laughter]

Michael: We were so proud of him. We were really excited for him.

Aaron: He got nothing but support, from the entire office. He was really surprised.

MR: So the guys are differentiated now, how would you describe them? Harry seems to be sort of the good-intentioned family man.

Rich: Well, he’s one of the few kind of family men, and he’s trying to be a good guy, I think. But there’s this allure of these two yahoos [Ken and Paul] in the office. He wants to be both things, [workplace party guy and family man]. That is something that I think a lot of people go through. If you like where you work or the people that you work with, you want that camaraderie. About 98 percent of the time that camaraderie conflicts with things that you want for yourself or the person that you’re trying to be. That’s kind of Harry’s deal.

Aaron: Ken is a bachelor and…

MR: Loving it!

Aaron: And loving it. I think he’s proud and happy and …

Rich: All the things Harry wants to be. [laughter]

Aaron: I think that Ken is having a blast and enjoying all that this life has to offer -- the world and all the decadence that people are sort of surprised ever existed. I think that he’s just in the middle of all of it.

MR: And it’s interesting, though, he’s not just the party guy – you know, when he had that scene with Peggy, when they’re auditioning the actress for a radio ad, and Ken kind of has this pretty reasonable take on female psychology – that was interesting. He can be sexist like the rest, but at one other point, he says, “Good job, Pegs.” That’s what I like about the show, he’s not just one thing, he’s not just that guy.

Aaron: Exactly, there’s not really a type. There’s not good and not bad, there are layers.

MR: So Mr. Kinsey. I love the name, by the way. The Kinsey Report.

Aaron: Yeah, it’s nice, right?

Michael: I don’t think he gets nearly as much [attention from the ladies] as Ken.

MR: And he broods about that constantly, right?

Michael: I think he’s very jealous of Ken for that, as well as for getting published in the Atlantic Monthly.

MR: That was so much fun, that rivalry.

Aaron: Your rivalry [laughter].

Michael: You don’t care.

Aaron: Not really.

Michael: Paul’s consumed by this. He named one of the characters in “Death Is My Client: A Play in One Act” Cosgrove. “Cosgrove, that hack!” [laughter]

Paul, he wants to be bohemian. I think he’s been described as a poser and I could never judge him like that because I love Paul. I think he has a good heart and he definitely has aspirations beyond Sterling Cooper. He loves “The Twilight Zone,” he wants to shoot for the stars, in some way.

MR: He’s an idealist.

Michael: I think so.

MR: Maybe he in some way represents that part of the Sixties, “We’re going to change the world!”

Michael: Yeah, that progressive [attitude]. I hope to God I’m still on this show for three [more] seasons and I hope that Paul within the bounds of that kind of buttoned-up Sterling Cooper way, [maybe he] reflects that movement of the Sixties, as much of any of us would.

MR: Yeah, re-watching the first season on DVD – you realize, Sterling Cooper is so not progressive in any way. Like, they think Kennedy could never win. It’s not like they’re out of step, but maybe they’re about to fall behind.

Aaron: I think you’re right.

Rich: It’s not a huge firm. For 1960, they’re getting a lot of business, they’re not a huge firm.

Michael: They’re not that progressive either.

Aaron: I think there’s an attempt by a couple people who maybe have some of that foresight, but there’s definitely strong resistance against that movement in the office. A couple people see that maybe we’re falling behind, and maybe we should do something about that.

MR: But certain people seem perfectly happy with things as they are.

Aaron: Yeah.

MR: Is there anything else you guys want to tell me?

Michael: Do you want to know what else happens?

MR: I do. I want to hear more about Kinsey’s cabaret career, for one thing.

Michael: Well, let me tell you. A fuschia sequined dress, you wouldn’t think would go with my skin tone. [laughter] Rich is about to have a heart attack.

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